WASHINGTON — The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued “interim final rules” that would expand protections for religious employers who are opposed to the contraceptive mandate in Obamacare, also known as the “abortion pill mandate.”

“Upon further examination of the relevant provisions of the Affordable Care Act and the administrative record on which the mandate was based, the departments have concluded that the application of the mandate to entities with sincerely-held religious objections to it does not serve a compelling governmental interest,” the document reads.

It provides numerous reasons as to why the government believes that religious organizations should be granted relief from the requirement, including that many religious employers that had challenged the mandate are not opposed to all contraceptives, but only those that are considered to be potential abortifacients.

“For example, the plaintiffs in Hobby Lobby were willing to provide coverage with no cost sharing of 14 of 18 FDA-approved women’s contraception and sterilization methods,” the 163-page document outlines.

Therefore, the accommodation requested—in the view of the government—was reasonable.

“With respect to organizations and entities holding those beliefs, the fact that they are willing to provide coverage for various contraceptive methods significantly detracts from the government interest in requiring that they provide coverage for other contraceptive methods to which they object,” HHS explains.

The department also recognizes that religious nonprofits were wrongfully being treated differently than churches, even though they operate similarly to houses of worship and hire people of faith just like churches do.

“After considering the differential treatment of various religious nonprofit organizations under the previous accommodation, the departments conclude that it is appropriate to expand the exemption to other religious nonprofit organizations with sincerely held religious beliefs opposed to contraceptive coverage,” it writes.

The department further notes that “[s]ome of the religious nonprofit groups challenging the accommodation claim that their employees are required to adhere to a statement of faith which includes the entities’ views on certain contraceptive items,” and such organizations have a right to choose to hire individuals based on whether or not they will respect the organization’s values.

It additionally advises that there are numerous government programs that provide free or low-cost contraceptives for women, and therefore, there is not a compelling government interest to force religious employers to have to provide them as well.

“Various state programs supplement the federal programs … and 28 states have their own mandates of contraceptive coverage as a matter of state law,” HHS explains. “This existing inter-governmental structure for obtaining contraceptives significantly diminishes the government’s interest in applying the mandate to employers over their sincerely held religious objections.”

Pro-life and family organizations cheered the move, stating that people of faith should not be forced to violate their beliefs.

“Although organizations that filed civil rights lawsuits will still need final relief from the courts, it is encouraging to see the Trump administration affirm the principle that all Americans should be free to peacefully live and work according to their faith and conscience without threat of government punishment,” said Gregory Baylor of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF).

“The federal government should never force Christian ministries to violate their faith or face crippling fines in order to continue their mission. We commend President Trump for fulfilling his promise to uphold the religious liberties of these organizations under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act,” also said Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel.

“There’s no other way to describe it: today’s administrative action is a tremendous victory for conscience and religious freedom,” said CeCe Heil of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ).

As previously reported, in May, President Trump signed an executive order that included a recommendation that HHS consider amending regulations to accommodate the conscience objections to the contraceptive mandate.

Numerous religious businesses, schools and nonprofit organizations had sued the Obama administration over the mandate, with the most high-profile cases being Burwell v. Hobby Lobby and Zubik v. Burwell, the latter of which was consolidated from seven lawsuits that included East Texas Baptist University and the Roman Catholic Little Sisters of the Poor.

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No not the tax payers instead. The ones using it are the ones that should pay for it. Personal responsibility.

MCrow

Except that’s not what’s happening. They are instead turning to state provided healthcare

MCrow

I should probably note that I’m for socialized healthcare since we have the capability of solving health issues…so we should do so. “Personal responsibility” with health care is, frankly, telling people it’s their fault if they are human.

1) Not a communist. Might shock you, but I can like some socialized aspects like universal health care without being a Maoist or Stalinist.
2) Not antifa – Anarchism is a wide ranging movement, and antifa falls under insurrectionists. I fall under anarchosyndiclism.
3) Not a terrorist. I’ve not once threatened violence, unlike you, who has declared he wants to hunt human beings.

If you are an exemplar of what it is to be a Christian, than I want less to do with your religion than I did at first. And given your attitude, I doubt very much you are older than I am. If you are…well, how is retirement treating you?

Osamao

Blah?……Neurotic lefty freak babbling like a lefty freak. Were purging you leftist scum whether you like it or not. Should have been done a long time ago. Keep taunting us now. I can’t wait until mid-terms. ………………..FLUSH!

MCrow

*We’re

Bob Johnson

I am not so sure. The medical cost of a pregnancy, plus maternity leave, and associated costs makes providing birth control coverage an attractive option.

Osamao

The Dems. did it when they decided to shove Obamaocare down our throats.
Too bad if you don’t like the unintended consequences of it.

MCrow

The Republicans came up with the plan. Why do you think they have such a hard time repealing it? Also, my main objection to Obamacare is that it didn’t socialize healthcare enough, so barking up the wrong tree

Osamao

“The Republicans came up with the plan.” is a half truth or Liberal LIE. And Obamaocare was meant to destroy our health care and force socialized medicine. Si. It’s really a crime against the American People. Socialism is unconstitutional. Move to Venezuela. You’ll love it.

MCrow

I live in Japan. I have socialized healthcare. I know many other people from Europe and Canada with socialized healthcare. We all agree the taxes spent on that are well worth it.

Also, speaking of lies, socialism isn’t against the constitution, and in no ways is passing a law to try to provide people health care a crime. But I’m sure a scholar such as yourself can point out where the constitution says that

Using taxes to help sick people get healthy isn’t going to destroy individual liberty. I note you don’t actually answer my question, so I’ll just assume you can’t and resort to insults. Plenty of countries have both individual liberties and universal health care.

Osamao

What I said. Too bad if you don’t like the truth.

MCrow

…I’m going to tell you to use proper English sentence structure and grammar as I have no idea what you just said

Osamao

Pointing out incorrect grammar is racist now. Haven’t you heard yet? It’s also a sad testament to Public Ed.

MCrow

If you want to claim your inability to use your primary language correctly as a “sad testament,” who am I to argue?

Osamao

That’s not what I said Lying Dem.

MCrow

I’m not a democrat, you should only capitalize when giving a proper noun, and you are just a little bundle of anger, aren’t you? If you want to give an argument, let me know. Otherwise, your tactics so far are schoolyard insults and unsupported propaganda that is about half a century out of date.

Osamao

What did I tell you about correcting grammar!! ……..You A. Hole Orwellian Communist Democrat control freaks declared that to be racist. You’re not a Democrat?………….But Democrats lie like Communists so……….

MCrow

You told me what I’m supposed to believe. Ironic from someone declaring me to be “Orwellian” as that is effectively what the Party did to people who disagreed with them.

And no, I’m not a democrat. I’m an anarchist. I know, scary, terrible, blah blah.

Keep at the insults, though. You have no valid points and it shows.

Osamao

No. Those were orders of your Democrat masters idiot.
O.M.G. You are too aggravatingly stupid to deal with……….Even for a useful idiot tool Communist Democrat So you’re a Communist Democrat Antifa Terrorist Domestic Enemy Traitor? The enemy within that’s to much of a coward to admit it. Can’t wait until we declare hunting season on you mothers!

MCrow

“No gods, no masters” is an anarchist mantra for a reason. I don’t follow the democrats. I certainly don’t follow what you say the democrats say.

You have yet to state any actual articulate point. All you’re doing is tossing around insults. If that’s what you need to feel like a big strong man, please continue. It amuses me to no end.

james blue

Non religious employers should also be given and exemption from religious accommodation laws.

People should have always been responsible for paying for their own birth control. Why should anyone else be responsible for it? If you can’t afford to pay then don’t play.

james blue

Want some crackers to go with your whine and cheese?

LynnRH

My feelings exactly Doug. I’ve wondered why I should have to pay for someone else’s birth control too. No one ever offered to pay for mine back in the day when I needed them. Course I never, every thought anyone else should. LOL

Osamao

We used to pay for it until Obamao used it as another tool to divide us with.

This style 10/6

Why is it that religion is so concerned with people’s sex lives? It often seems that that is the only thing it is concerned with.

BuckeyePhysicist

Why did God create us? Let’s start there.

This style 10/6

God didn’t!

Osamao

How do you know he didn’t?

This style 10/6

God is a human construct. Everything we know about religions shows this.

Osamao

That’s subjective. I disagree.

This style 10/6

OK.

Osamao

Why are Democrats such control freaks?…………Lets start there.

This style 10/6

Non sequitur.

Osamao

Because you said so?………. You’re a Statist. Want to talk unconstitutional?………..Please!

Osamao

We used to pay for it ourselves until the Divider in Chief Chairman Bao. FORWARD!
Liberal Tyranny Sucks.

james blue

Does conservative tyranny “suck”?

Osamao

You mean freedom and Individual liberty…………Only to you Statists.

james blue

If conservatives were for freedom and individual liberty they would be libertarians and they most certainly are NOT that

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